Council leader Peter Thompson insisted employees who survived a cull of about 300 jobs, as part of the 'Performance Improvement Programme', would be rewarded once the full extent of savings had been determined.

He also refuted claims by Labour councillor Pritam Grewal that the loss of experienced staff, coupled with 'minimal' training, had left a 'knowledge gap'.

Cllr Grewal (pictured), who tabled a motion at last Tuesday night's council meeting, said: "We're not against the PIP but we feel more attention's been giving to saving money than improving skills and services."

But Cllr Thompson promised pay, training and working conditions would all be reviewed once the savings, estimated at £53 million over three years, had been finalised this April.

He dismissed claims customer service had been affected, pointing out that although the council's performance rating had dropped from 61 to 57 per cent that was mainly down to leisure provision and benefits, both of which are run by external contractors.

Unison branch secretary Iain Raymond said it was important for council leaders to keep their promises over pay and training because the existing low wages, compared with neighbouring councils, made it hard to attract the best staff